Two British Tourists Fall To Their Deaths In Les Deux Alpes

28th February 2009 | Alicia Gough, Regional Editor

Two British tourists have died after falling down an icy ravine in the French ski resort of Les Deux Alpes. Christopher Lockwood, 28, and Richard Ryan, 27, both from Leeds in Yorkshire, were returning to their chalet following a night out.

Friends alerted police that the pair was missing on Thursday morning. Their bodies were found on Friday afternoon after a 36-hour search. Lockwood and Ryan had been drinking in the popular Smithy’s pub and left around 2 a.m. to make their way home.

A police spokesman told ITN: “The spot where they fell is very steep and although unprotected, there are signs up everywhere which are lit up at night warning of the ravine.” He also added that interviews with friends had revealed both men had drunk large quantities of beer.

This news comes shortly after the body of a UK hiker was found near the French town of Villard-Notre Dame on Wednesday.

The 32-year-old Christopher Hilton went missing in July 2008 while on a hiking holiday with his parents. He set off on his own to take photographs of the landscape and never returned. The photographer’s body was found trapped in a frozen waterfall at the foot of a 50-metre cliff. It is thought he may have fallen to his death after slipping.